The mention of the mamzer (traditionally, "bastard") in Devarim 23:3 is traditionally understood as the severe social stigmatization of a child born of an illicit sexual union. Such individuals are ...

It says in the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch (104:2), "One who disgraces Chol Hamo'ed, even though he has to his credit Torah and good deeds, has no share in the World to Come." Disgracing Chol Hamoed implies ...

When the Gemarah tells us that a Suma (a blind person) is "Patur" from Mitzvot, does that mean to say that he is completely outside the realm of Mitzvot, and will get no reward for doing them, or does ...

The very start of mishnayos maseches Midos mentions that the l'viyim guarded the bes hamikdash in various locations, and that, if the captain of the guards caught a guard asleep on the job, he'd hit ...

From what I understand, all sicknesses and injuries fall upon a person because either G-d wants to wake him up to repent or to punish him.
With that being the case, by seeking healing the person is ...

Recently, there was a discussion on Mi Yodeya about whether there was a Jewish source for the practice of divination and sorcery via blei gissen (Bleigießen). Based on the actual Jewish sources (e.g. ...

I don't remember which mishna it is, however there is a mishna that lists certain ways a person loses their portion in the world to come. However in the case of Elisha ben Avuha, he thought he lost ...

In light of the recent Charlie Hebdo incident with depictions of Mohammed (and others like), are there any punishments for derogatory depictions of our Jewish prophets and sages (be it in our times or ...

If a married man or woman propositions sexual misconduct to a person, or a man or woman propositions a person they know is married, is there a prescribed penalty according to the law, i.e. would a a ...

In the Midrashim I noticed that Rabbanim keep mentioning events in which the Rabbi would be walking along and come across a man doing some task and it would turn out to be the spirit of a dead man who ...

Many times, as a merit for a recovery for someone sick or someone in need, I have been asked to have that person in mind when I learn. In some places, they will put up a sign asking to have a certain ...

If a person is able to make choices in this world, and especially if a person is able to disbelieve that there is a Divine order of any type, how does it make sense for a person's soul to be punished ...

Did Adam and Eve have moral culpability in the Garden before they ate from the tree of knowledge of Good and Evil? It would seem that they were like small children in that sense, they were amoral--not ...

Kidushin 31a brings the story of Dama ben Nesina and his amazing Kibud Av V'Aim which cost him a huge fortune. He was rewarded for his amazing Kibud Av V'Aim by one of his cows giving birth to a red ...

Hashem says: “All who anger me shall not see [the land]” (Bamidbar 14:33)
According to the Midrash (see חידושי מרן הגרי"ז who brings this medrash), this means that everyone, even the young children, ...

Rashi (Bemidbar 13:25) implies that the Jews were in the Sinai Desert for 40 years in response to the spies being in the Land of Israel for 40 days.
While the spies had 40 days worth of planning to ...

In the brocha of we ask Hashem to "grant good reward to those who sincerely trust in Your name". Is this really necessary? Do we not have a promise that Hashem rewards for even the smallest mitzva? ...

What are the Biblical and rabbinic sources that say that someone accused of a crime, especially a capital crime, must be proved to have had a prior warning or instruction that the activity was a sin ...

In Yehoshua 7:15 God tells Yehoshua that when he finds the man that took from the forbidden booty of Jericho he should punish him with burning. Yet at the end of that very chapter in verse 25 Achan is ...

The Torah Vayikra 14:34 introduces the topic of tzara'ath on houses as if it were a good tiding - from this, the Midrash learns that the good tiding is finding hidden treasure when having to demolish ...

Deuteronomy 24:16 says “The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers; every man shall be put to death for his own sin." Why then ...

A convert is suppoed to accept the ol mitzvot, the burden of halacha but does this mean an explicit intent to follow the mitzvot or simply the acceptance that there is a punishment if the mitzvot are ...

If one does something on Shabbos, say, that is patur aval issur (like an act of destruction) what is the punishment? I know that Beis Din (court) does nothing, but are there any sources for what the ...

I have learned that punishments in the Torah often (always?) have a rehabilitative aspect to them as well as providing justice to the victim, e.g. someone who steals and can't pay back the value of ...